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Princess Cookie

Miniature Schnauzer

Madera, CA

Please contact Andrea (msandrearobinson@gmail.com) for more information about this pet.

Affectionate, playful, housebroken, high energy

Cookie is a very fun dog if you like to have an active life and interact with your dog. Favorite activities: Being your Velcro dog. Jumping up to greet you. She can "sit to greet" or resist the temptation to jump if you take the time to reinforce her - otherwise, look forward to her jumping up on you a lot. Chasing cats, rabbits, gophers, flies, and anything else that moves.

Going outside. She'll pull on the leash but she's smarter than a whip and learns fast. She can't seem to do any slow, fluid movements, even when she walks, because she's very hyper. She will bark to let you know that someone's there, and will display rather aggressive Schnauzer-like behavior at the fence line, but has a very solid recall and will come in out of the yard if you want her to be quiet. She knows the words, "Quiet please" and will be quiet to earn a treat! This is a seriously good thing because otherwise she could be a yapper dog. She will get along with playful, young dogs who are not looking to be the leader of the pack. She will be bossy towards any dog, so the best matches for her that I've seen are the dogs that don't really take offense and want to play. I would not pair her up with a dog that is so shy and submissive that Cookie could bully them or an older dog that doesn't want to play with enthusiasm. She'd love to sleep in your bed, and tends to be jealous of other dogs, but will get the picture if you stand your ground.

Her approximate birth date is 10/18/2012. She is current on her rabies shots, spayed, and microchipped. She is ready for sports, as her energy and enthusiasm are high.

She responds very well and enthusiastically to rewards-based training, especially when treats are the reward. She adores dog toys and loves to chase a ball!

Her entire snout is skewed to her left, while her jaw remains straight, making her lower canine teeth stick up on one side and lie flat on the other. I don't know if this is genetic, an accident, or puppy abuse. Princess should not live in a home with children under 12. She doesn't like being picked up or being handled by children and will bite if the kid can't resist the temptation to mishandle her. Her ideal "parent" would be a middle-aged lady who is kind and doesn't mind teaching her tricks. Cookie actually loves to learn tricks (especially if there's something in it for her like praise or treats), but you have to be someone who likes teaching them and/or has the time to do it. Another ideal person might be an adult male who likes to go on runs and would take her along. She needs someone to wear her out and teach her some manners without being mean. I have a feeling that a lot of her negative behaviors were caused by abuse, because she's become a much nicer doggy since I started fostering her. But she hates my dog and I'm a couch potato, so she really can't get what she needs here.

Downside: Princess has a very assertive personality by nature and has bitten in the past, so you have to pay attention to her. While she has an awesome recall inside the house and yard, and will literally stop barking at a cat to come, I've never worked with her off-leash outside the house, so don't expect the same kind of recall if she gets distracted by a cat outside. She'll chase the cat. Fortunately, I think if she were properly trained, she could learn a lot because she's very smart. She will always need to be supervised around young children, even if she loves them. You have to teach her to like your guests. She'll think they're invaders. The best way I've found is to give the guests some treats and hold her on a leash the first few times they come over. After the guests have given her treats for a few visits, she suddenly loves them. She doesn't seem to have any "middle ground." I would always supervise her with anyone and be aware that she was in a bad home for awhile (which I personally witnessed) where she resorted to biting everyone due to bad handling on the part of the family. Schnauzers are feisty and love one person passionately. 'They are described as spirited, fearless, obedient, alert, friendly, and intelligent.' She can be domineering to nice dogs.

She learned to let me vacuum without barking and knows the cue "quiet": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbX9274bMZA&feature=youtu.be Lately I've been teaching her not to run out the front door and made a little video about how I'm teaching her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoY6STgYAZI The overall impression that I have of Princess is that once she decides she loves you, it's for life.